The good version is “Bully,” an exclamation popularized by President Teddy Roosevelt in the early 1900s. It means wonderful, fantastic or, as we might say today, awesome.

The bad type is the nasty character in school who throws another kid against a locker, talks trash to a person or posts awful electronic messages about someone. In other words, a bully.

So we say “Bully” to the 2015 Legislature for finally passing an anti-bullying bill, making Montana the last state in the Union to do so.

Congratulations for making this move by approving House Bill 284, which passed the House 58-42 on third reading Monday. It’s on its way to Gov. Steve Bullock to be signed, after years of trying by anti-bullying advocates.

Under the bill, bullying is defined as: “any harassment, intimidation, hazing, or threatening, insulting, or demeaning gesture or physical contact, including any intentional written, verbal, or electronic communication or threat directed against a student that is persistent, severe, or repeated.” It also must cause a student physical harm, property damage or fear of harm; create a hostile environment, or substantially or materially disrupt school operations.

The bill applies to students in public schools grades kindergarten through 12. Kimberly Dudik, a Missoula Democrat, is the primary sponsor.

We realize this bill won’t be a panacea. How a school is managed and operated is more important than simply having a law on the books in Montana. Still, having the law in place starting this fall will help discourage bullying to some degree.

People seeking to minimize the effects of bullying — whether they are parents of bullies, teachers or school administrators — must face the fact that it’s against the law to bully people.

Stepping in to stem bullying of children has taken on greater urgency in recent years after victims of bullying killed themselves, pushing the subject from mainly a concern of parents, kids and schools to that of one affecting an entire community.

Adding to the danger today is the ease with which people can send out anonymous messages electronically, through the Internet, through social media and on smart phones.

Rude, threatening, harassing remarks have never been so easy to distribute.

In the past, bullying in schools would have consisted mainly of nasty notes, hallway confrontations, other face-to-face incidents or telephone calls.

We are elated that legislators for the state of Montana have not, once again, ignored bullying as if it didn’t exist. Legislators faced a problem and acted responsibly.

For that, we are grateful.

So are the many Montana parents and children who took their stories of bullying to the Legislature and pleaded for action.

Hats off to them for asking and to our representatives in Helena for listening.